“The Great Steam Deck Crash”: Analysis shows how much revenue Valve may have lost

For a long time, the Steam Deck was widely regarded as one of the best value-for-money PC handhelds on the market. At launch, the 64 GB LCD model started at $399, making it one of the most affordable options available. By 2026, however, that has changed dramatically. Valve has discontinued the budget LCD model and now charges at least $789 for the OLED versions (reviewed here on Notebookcheck), which are currently available on Amazon for $1.050. Before the price increase, the OLED Steam Deck started at $549. For many Reddit users, it's no surprise that such a steep price hike has hurt demand. A new analysis by Boiling Steam attempts to estimate just how significant the financial impact on Valve could be.

Boiling Steam examined Steam's top sellers charts, which are ranked by revenue rather than units sold. While that doesn't reveal exact sales figures, it does allow for rough estimates of Valve's revenue trend. According to the Linux-focused publication, the Steam Deck typically occupied fourth or fifth place in Steam's revenue charts over the past several years, corresponding to an estimated 11,000 to 18,000 units sold per week. The handheld has now slipped to 14th place, which Boiling Steam estimates translates to only 1,400 to 3,000 weekly sales – a decline of up to 82%. Based on those estimates, Valve's weekly Steam Deck revenue may have dropped by roughly $6 million.

Many owners say they can no longer recommend the Steam Deck

The reported decline has not come as much of a surprise on Reddit. Many users say they still love their Steam Deck but can no longer recommend it at its current price. After all, the hardware inside is now several years old and increasingly struggles with modern AAA games. At nearly $800, buyers are also within striking distance of significantly more powerful handhelds such as the Asus ROG Ally X, the Lenovo Legion Go, or even full-fledged gaming laptops. The overall sentiment within the community is clear: the Steam Deck was so compelling because it was both affordable and powerful enough. Without that price advantage, many believe Valve's handheld loses its biggest selling point.